Back on social media

22 May 2020

Nearly two years ago, I wrote an article where I proclaimed I was no longer using social media.

I totally went back on that.

After deleting my Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts, I created another Facebook (now deleted) to join a photography group. I got back on Instagram and created a 500px account to practice photography. I don’t put any effort into photography anymore, but I might use it for creative inspiration.

I lurked on Twitter without an account, reading accounts I liked.

And now I’m tweeting.

After not using social media for a while, why am I back on it?

I have a better sense of what social media is for. I see it as less of a “do it because everybody else is on it”, and more of a tool to help me with a specific skill. When I wanted to do photography, I turned to social media to help me do that.

I want to learn how to build relationships online. I never learned how to do this before. With so many of our interactions going digital, connecting with others online is going to become more important. I think it’s a skill worth getting good at. Twitter gives me a training ground to do that.

I also think Twitter can also help me learn. Twitter has been key in helping me learn about coronavirus. There are tons of people saying interesting things on the platform. I want to expose myself to more of that. I’ll integrate what I learn into my map of how things work. Hopefully making it better.